Telemarketers, valuable info on do not call compliance

A critical part of any direct marketing campaign

by Brittany Kiernan on June 29, 2015

A telephone ringing insistently! Is there anything more compelling than this call to action? Versatile and cost effective, telemarketing done right can not only generate sales for businesses but also put them in direct contact with interested prospects who do not rely on a third party platform to receive targeted information about relevant products and services.

One of the unique selling points of telemarketing is the one-on-one interaction that takes place between the buyer and the seller. Prospects do not just ‘read’ about what a business has to offer, they actually engage with a live human being, ask questions, clarify doubts and use verbal cues to gauge the commitment and transparency of the company. A spot on telemarketing call thus leverages anticipation on part of the targets and matches seekers to possible solutions that can mitigate their problems. It is quick and easy and the return on investment is high!

DO NOT CALL LAWS AND THEIR NEED

But often a sales call may not be desirable. There might be a new baby in the house that sleeps light. There may be patients who need to rest throughout the day. Or the household may not like being disturbed with information about discounts and launches. It is purely a matter of convenience and personal preference. In order to ensure that individuals who do not wish to entertain telemarketing calls rest easy, Federal and State governments require businesses to comply with a set of Do Not Call laws – namely the Telephone Sales Rule (TSR), enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), administered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) – in all their direct marketing efforts. As per the last conducted survey by the FTC in 2007, 72% of US citizens have at least one number on the National Do Not Call Registry database that is strictly regulated and monitored by it.

WHEN IS CALLING A PROSPECT OR A CLIENT PERMITTED?

As a responsible telemarketer, you can reach out to clients and prospects under the following circumstances:

The individual in question is not registered on the Do Not Call (DNC) database.

The company is making calls that are classified as “Market Research” or non-sales.

The calls are being made on behalf of non-profits organization.

Your calls are being made on by government entities.

The individual in question has provided explicit permission expressing a desire to receive telemarketing calls from you as a business to their given number.

The individual is an existing client of your business. You may contact an individual for up to 18 months after their last purchase even if they are registered on the DNC database. However if a client requests cessation of telemarketing messages, you must comply to avoid legal action.

The individual in question has enquired about company services or submitted an application to your business. Putting through telemarketing calls to numbers on the DNC registry for up to 3 months after such an occurrence is permitted by law.

PROVISIONS OF THE DNC LAW: HOW CAN BUSINESSES GET COMPLIANT?

Being DNC compliant is a rigorous task. Most businesses outsource this responsibility. But they are still held accountable if any incidents of violation crop up. This is why companies must be very discerning and cautious when it comes to choosing a provider to keep their telemarketing database free of DNC registered numbers.

The following are the major guidelines:

Telemarketers can only call numbers that are not a part of the DNC Registry. There are exceptions though and these have been discussed in the previous section.

Telemarketers have 31 days to remove a number that has been recently registered on the DNC database from their list. After the grace period is up, a call made to the number can incur fines of $16,000 by the National Registry and $25,000 by the state.

Telemarketers who use a power dialer to speed up the process of covering their database have two seconds to transfer a call to an agent after it has been answered by an individual. Anything more is considered a violation and a waste of the target/prospect’s time. This restriction though doesn’t apply to answering machines.

In case the transfer takes more than 2 seconds the call may be disconnected by the recipient and thus ‘abandoned’. For a telemarketer with a good reputation, the percentage of abandoned calls should be no more than 3. A high number here is a mark of inefficiency and sloppy execution and the business may be up for a reprimand.

Telemarketers should maintain transparency in all their dealings. This means ID blocking is not allowed and businesses should train their representatives to introduce themselves and the company before launching into the description of the products and services.

Calling a wireless number from an auto dialer is prohibited under the DNC Law.

Telemarketers must refrain from calling residential numbers before 8am in the morning and after 9pm at night.

HOW AMERILIST CAN HELP YOUR DNC COMPLIANCE QUEST

Amerilist is a seasoned pro where effective telemarketing is concerned. A market leader with an impeccable track record of attention to detail, our services go beyond checking your database for DNC violations. We have the tools required to regularly access state as well as Federal DNC registries, scrub your list at the prescribed frequency to ensure complete Do Not Call Compliance and provide detailed reports of the iterations for documentation.

We can also set up company specific DNC Lists that you may share with your targets and clients to stay updated of their telemarketing preferences.

For more information on how Amerilist solutions can help you become DNC compliant, call 1-800-457-2899 or email a representative at sales@amerilist.com